Box



March 6, 1934. N. SCANDORE BOX Filed April 15. 1952 IN V EN TOR.

A TTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 6, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

The invention relates to` article carrying` structures which areadaptedto have a Wide variety of uses and which are particularlyadaptedto be conveniently carried about by a person, the

5 structures being constituted inthe form of a receptacle customarilyutilized with frequency during the course ofanormal day and beingparticularly applicable for carrying childrens school supplies,luncheoI-is,- miscellaneous small articles or combinations thereofalthough. not limited thereto. More particularly the present inventionrelates to improvements in a structure of the type usually designated abox to" contain in compact fashion various articles which are readilyaccessible for frequent usage.

In one embodiment,v the article carrying structure or box of the presentinvention includes a casing in which an inner rim is' disposed to se'-cure one complement of the coverfor the casing 20 in place, there beingsuitable clearance between the walls of the casing and portions of therim to provide an air cushion to take up or absorb any jar to` which therim may be subject,y the walls of the rim preferably being of relativelyheavy cardboard or the like and the walls of the casing being preferablyof cardboard' stock slightly of a less thickness.

The rim of the character referred to is of relatively heavy stock toreinforce the wallsof the casing and comprises a unitary member havingits free ends secured together by friction. In accordance with onev formof the invention, a portion of the rim is also madev substantially twicethe thickness of the relatively heavy cardboard stock utilized toconstruct theA rim. In this connection an upper portion of the rim isfolded over and secured against the rear facey thereof to form a ledge.However, due toV the stock of the rim being relatively thick and heavy,it has been found that it is first necessary to weaken the samepreparatory to folding. If thebody of the rim be scored or creased intheusual manner-and the portion forming the ledge be' folded over andagainst the back thereof a ragged and broken surface is formedrv whichdetracts from the appearance of the rimconcomitantly decreasing the lifeand durability thereof. Itis therefore a particular object oftheinvention to provide a reinforced rim for the casingv having a turnedover ledge which is secured tothe back face of the rim and to provideY asmooth upper edge without detracting from the appearance of the rim orotherwise lessening. its durability.

According to anotherl form of the invention,

the rim is reinforced by interposing between its overhanging portion orledgeandbody of the rim an independent member for increasing thethickness of the upper portion of the rim substantially to three timesthe thickness of the stock. In another form of the invention, the rimmay be reinforced by first folding to provide an overhanging ledge;without cracking or otherwise weakening upper edg'e surface of the rimand subsequently folding the lower portion of the ledge inwardly andupwardly to' provide an intermediatel depending member which secured' tothe rear face of the rim.

It is another' object of the invention to provide a casingv in` which areinforced is provided withr a ledgeadapted to interlock with struck outportions of a component or a cover to prevent the latter from beingdisengaged from the interiorv of the casing. It is a further object toprovide a; cover having components interconnected by muslin or the liketo permit the components to be easily adjusted, one of the componentsbeing interposedy between the casing and the rim, the other componentbeing swingable towards and' away' from the rim of the casing, thel rimbeing detachably connected -to-the one of the components.

A-further object ofthe invention oomprehends theA utilization of thefupper edge of the rim for seating the swingable portion of the coverwhich forms av closure for the casing and has its upper surfacepreferably flushv with the Lipper edges of the walls/ of the casing.

And still other objects, features, and advantages of my invention are toimprove generally the methodl of assembling the container or box of" thecharacter alluded to andv to provide an economical method? for thepurposes set forth which' comprises relatively few stepsandwhich is easyto carry into eiiec'tv in relatively small time. interval;

Other' objects" are in' partl obvious and in part pointed outhereinafter.

The invention is exemplified in" the combina'- tiorr andv arrangement ofparts' shown in the ac companying' drawing and described in the:following specification and it is more' particularly pointed out in theappendedE claim.

Referring to the drawing:

Figi. l is-aivievv'o'f` the box, according to the inventiong shown inperspective and closed.y

Fig. 2-i`s71A a' view of the bofx' illustrated-1in perspective andinop'enpositionto show the interiorfconstruction-r o'f the.y casing-`before the riml is' arrangedf against allf the inside facesV thereof.

Fig. 3 is a section taken approximately along the line 3--3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a section along the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary View of a piece of the rim before foldingthereof.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary View of the cover showing the manner in whichthe complements thereof are swingably connected.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view of a modied rim for the casing and Fig. 8 isstill another modification of a rim.

As will be readily understood from a consideration of the underlyingfeatures of the box construction in accordance with the invention,various changes and modifications may be effected thereto withoutdeparting from the underlying principles for improving generally theeiciency and simplicity of the container of the characterhereindescribed and for providing a storing and carrying structure,which is durable as to construction, which is reliable in operation andwhich comprises few parts to permit of economy in manufacture.

In the form illustrated, the box construction is broadly designated 10and comprises essentially three parts, to wit, a casing 11, an innerreinforcing rim 12 and a cover 13.

The casing includes a bottom wall 14, front wall 15, back wall 16, sidewalls 17 and 18, the latter and the front wall being interconnected by abeveled wall as 19. The front, back, side and beveled walls constitutean enclosure surrounding the bottom Wall 14 and these may be suitablyconnected in any well known fashion. The enclosure is preferably ofseveral ply cardboard stock although of course the invention is notlimited to cardboard or the like.

Associated with the enclosure above alluded to and preferably arrangedin juxtaposition with respect to the upstanding walls thereof is theinner rim generally denoted 12. The rim is utilized to reinforce thewalls of the enclosure of the casing and preferably is a unitaryelongated member which has been suitably bent to conform substantiallyto a corresponding contour of the enclosure that is provided with afront wall 21, rear wall 22, side walls 23 and 24, the latter beinginterconnected with the front wall 21 of the 'rim by beveled sides as25. The rim is preferably of a relatively heavy cardboard and of athickness slightly greater than the thickness of the walls of theenclosure of the casing.

In folding cardboard of relatively heavy stock it has been customary toeither crease or score before folding. With either method, the cardboardgenerally cracked and left a ragged edge or surface. According to thepresent invention, a single sheet of cardboard is utilized to provide areinforced rim of substantially twice the normal strength of the boardalthough witho-ut employing a corresponding amount of cardboard andwithout in any way detracting from the appearance of the rim.

For this purpose, the upper portion of the rim is slightly weakened byproviding therein a groove as 26 which has a reduced wall 27interconnecting the ledge forming part 28 and body of the rim 12 that isto say, part 28 is folded or swung towards the body of the rim about thereo duced wall portion of the groove 26 and is subsequently secured tothe body of the rim.

The ledge'28 may be secured to the rim by cement or glue or in anysuitable fashion, the upper surface of the interconnecting wall 27 beingthus left smooth and unbroken and forms a seat for the closurecomplement of the cover 13.

The sides of the reinforced rim are placed in juxtaposition with respectto corresponding sides of the enclosure and the free terminals of thisrim, namely 31 and 32 when disposed against like walls of the casingfrictionally engage and by reason of this connection the rim ismaintained in proper location against the walls of the enclosure. Owingto the ease with which the rim may be properly arranged and securedwithin the casing to reinforce the same, a needless step such assecuring the ends of the rim by glue or the like is done away with andhence considerable time is saved in assembling.

According to the invention the rim is reinforced and the rim reinforcesthe enclosure of the casing and although the rim is reinforced tosubstantially twice its strength, no additional stock for the rim isutilized apart from the original stock employed. In addition, provisionhas been made to` absorb appreciable shock imparted to the rim, whichshock is substantially prevented from reaching the enclosure of thecasing. In other words, the ledge 28 reinforces the upper part of therim, and the air gap 33 takes up jars or the like transmitted to theother interior portions of the rim. In this way, substantially theentire height of the enclosure is reinforced.

The cover 13 comprises two components, one a swingable closure 34, andthe other an anchoring member 35 and these are swingably interconnectedby pieces of muslin, cloth or the like as 36.

The anchoring member 35 is provided with a pair of spaced struck outlugs or tabs 37 and these cooperate to interlock with the bottom face ofledge 28 forming a connection between the anchoring component and thereinforcing rim to prevent the cover from being accidentally orneedlessly detached from the casing, the outer muslin between thecomponents being adapted to be positioned on the top face 38 of the rearwall v16 to prevent undue wear of and preserve edge 38 and also permitthe swingable closure suicient freedom to overhang this edge.

In the assembling of the container, the rim may be first positionedwithin the casing and subsequently arranged adjacent to the wallsthereof. Following this operation the anchoring complement is locatedbetween the rear walls of the rim and casing and is then forceddownwardly until its bottom face rests on the bottom of the casing andin this position the struck out tabs abut or interlock with the bottomface of the ledge of the rim. Or alternatively, the anchoring complementmay be iirst positioned within the casing and subsequently the free endsof the rim be frictionally secured as hereinbefore set forth. Arrangedin this fashion, the struck out tabs also cooperate with the lower faceof the adjacent ledge to prevent outward displacement of the anchoringcomplement.

As illustrated, the height of the reinforcing rim is slightly less thanthe height of the walls of the casing and as previously pointed out thetop face of the rim forms a seat for the swingable complement of thecover, which by reason of the enclosure extending above the rim, thecover is so positioned as to be ush with the top edges of theenclosure.

Provision has been made for disconnectibly lockingthe swingablecomplement of the cover to the casing. 'Io this end, the top face of thecover'has secured thereto a suitable plate 40 which carries a reexedmember 41 adapted to be received in a housing 42 to which the swingablebuckle 43 is hinged, the body of the buckle being bent substantially atright angles whereby its upper portion when the buckle is swung upwardlymay cooperate with a raised portion 44 carried by plate 40 and hold thelip 41 within its housing and the swingable complement of the cover`against its seat, the housing being secured by straps as 50 passingthrough the front wall of the housing and the reinforced part of therim.

Easy access may be had to the inner compartment of the container bysimply lifting the buckle away from the raised portion 44 and swingingsame towards its housing. The cover may then be quickly raised bygrasping the free portion of the reiiexed member 41 and liftingupwardly.

To enhance the appearance of the inside surfaces of the compartment andthe outside walls of the casing and cover therefor a suitable finishinglining as 40 in appropriate colors may be applied where desirable.

In order that the container may be conveniently carried about by aperson, a handle 60 in the form of a bail may be attached to the frontwall of the casing in any suitable manner. As shown clips 45 formingsockets for loosely and rotatably receiving the terminals of the bailare secured to the front wall of the casing by the aid of prongs 46 orthe like passing through the walls of the casing and the associated rim,which prongs are suitably bent for fastening as is well understood.

In the form according to Fig. 7, the ledge 28 is provided with anupwardly bent portion 51 which is disposed in juxtaposition with respectto the ledge 28 and secured against the body of the rim. In this way theupper part of the body is reinforced substantially to three times itsoriginal strength, the intermediate portion 51 being an integral part ofledge 28 being folded in such manner as to provide a smooth lower face.

According to the showing of Fig. 8, the rim is reinforced to increaseits strength by an independent member 52 interposed between and securedto the adjacent faces of the overhanging ledge and the body of the rim.

While the invention has been described as being particularly useful tocarry school supplies for children, luncheons or the like, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not limited to these articles and ofcourse is capable of embodiment in whole or in part to carry otherarticles than those herein specifically referred to.

In the broader aspects of the invention, I do not desire to beunderstood as limiting its embodiments to details herein shownillustratively as a wide variety of modifications may be made within thescope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

I claim:

In a device of the character described, a casing having a wall, anenclosure surrounding said wall, means for reinforcing said enclosurecomprising a rim, the latter having a turned over portion provided witha smooth upper face disposed below the upper edge of the enclosure, theturned over portion overlapping an outside face of the rim and securedthereto to provide a ledge, the rim being provided with free terminalsremovably and frictionally secured, a cover comprising an anchoringmember and a closure, the anchoring member having struck out meansadapted to abut said ledge for removably holding the cover to thecasing, the closure being adapted to seat on said smooth face so as tobe iiush with the upper edge of the enclosure, iiexible means connectingthe closure and the anchoring member and means for detachably lockingthe closure to the casing.

NICHOLAS SCANDORE.

